Colborne resident concerns about Bill 150

The following is a letter written on March 30 by Cramahe resident Alwyn Horscroft to Northumberland-Quinte West MPP Lou Rinaldi regarding Bill 150.
Mr. Horscroft has included the reply he received from Mr. Rinaldi later the same day.

Dear Mr. Rinaldi,

I would just like to give you a couple of thoughts I have been having about Bill 150. Much of it seems to be heading in the right direction. It may be a little heavily weighted in favour of wind power, but I'm certainly not qualified to judge that, and I must admit to having some difficulty understanding some of the bill.

However, when it comes to the energy audits I do have something to say, and I would hope that you will consider this.

Many of us in your riding are pensioners living on a fixed income, and we don't really need extra expenses if it should come to the time when we have to sell our houses. In our case we would like to remain in this house as long as we can, but even if we stay here until we die, we will still have the problem of leaving our children a liability rather than an asset. The first thing they would have to do is have it audited at their expense.

For many it isn't a case of finding out what needs doing. I can tell you now that the basement wall needs fixing, which will mean ripping up the back deck, and after that we have a couple of windows need replacing, and we don't need an assessment to know that they are leaking air in the winter.

The federal budget this year gave tax credits for fixing some of these things up, but they are a fat lot of good if you don't earn enough to pay taxes.

The bill didn't make it clear to me whether we would be forced to carry out any alterations to make it more energy efficient, although I can assure you that many of us would love to be able to pour loads of insulation into the walls, and buy a new furnace. These things aren't possible, and no law about energy audits is going to change this.

Really, when you buy a hundred year old house, you know that you are inheriting some problems, but if you had a couple of hundred thousand dollars extra you might buy a more expensive house. Then again, you might not.

I was also upset about the section which would give inspectors the right to enter one's premises. I understand that it says between six a.m. and nine p.m. Any inspector entering my house at either end of that period would be liable to catch me in bed. They used to say that an Englishman's home is his castle. I hope that a Canadian would have the same rights as an Englishman.

I would strongly recommend that this section of Bill 150 should be gone over with a fine tooth comb, and either removed or amended.

Yours Sincerely,
Alwyn P. Horscroft

The reply from Mr. Rinaldi is below:

March 30th, 2009

Thank you for taking the time to share your views with me on the government’s new Green Energy Act. As always, I appreciate hearing from you and further appreciate the opportunity to respond to your concerns.

It’s time to change the way we think about electricity. The McGuinty government’s proposed Green Energy Act (GEA) can ignite that essential transformation, to the benefit of our economy, our security, the future of our families and our planet. The GEA is not simply legislation; but a complete rethink of the way we consume and conserve, produce and deliver energy. The GEA would make Ontario a global leader in green economics, generation and conservation – creating up to 50,000 jobs in the next three years and encouraging global investment in Ontario for decades to come.

As important as modernizing our energy infrastructure is; we must also reduce our carbon footprint. Supported by members of all parties during debate in the legislature, a key plank in the GEA’s conservation platform would be the implementation of home energy audits. Energy audits allow each of us to assess and improve our homes by promoting efficiency and conservation; yielding real savings and increased property values to owners everywhere.

The idea behind a home energy audit is simple. As homes come to market for sale, an audit will be performed to assess a property’s efficiency – and reveal its potential. Audits would be performed by NRCan EcoEnergy certified energy auditors – ensuring professional standards by accredited individuals. On site, an auditor will measure the energy efficiency of any home, and deliver a report to the owner that will catalogue any improvements that might be made to save energy.

The owner can then choose whether to make any recommended improvements – there is no obligation. Every owner does qualify for a combined provincial/federal retrofit rebate package of up to $10,000 towards any needed improvements. This initiative will be phased in over a period of time. The result? Not a pass or a fail, but an opportunity. By making a home more efficient, an owner enjoys reduced operating costs and a potential increase of the property’s value.

Much ado has been made about both the cost of an audit and the rights of homeowners to control an auditor’s access. Like anything worth having, an audit will cost a small investment of about $150 – which will be matched by the provincial government. The benefit? A plan to improve your property and sales value while decreasing energy costs if improvements are made. All voluntary. The issue of access is also important. Audits will be scheduled through a cooperative process that respects both an owner’s rights and the regulations of the act.

The proposed Green Energy Act would transform Ontario’s electricity generation system into one of the cleanest, greenest energy supply mixes in the world. This is a work in progress; we need your input to make the GEA and the audit process an effective and fair reality. Check out www.ontario.ca/greenenergy .

This Bill is presently in front of the Standing Committee of Government Agencies and it is here that all Ontarians have the opportunity to send their concerns along. I would encourage you to write to the clerk, Mr. Arnott or you may wish to write to each Member of the committee as well. Should you choose to write the Clerk he will forward your concerns along to all Members of the Committee.